WWE RAW Results: The Absolute Best of 2022 – December 26, 2022
– WWE RAW: The Absolute Best of 2022 begins in an all-white room with The Street Profits. This isn’t Gorilla Position, according to Montez Ford. According to Angelo Dawkins, this is where all the TV magic happens. Dawkins snaps his fingers, causing a RAW intro with The Profits to play in the background. Ford realizes that if he thinks it, it will happen here, and Dawkins says only if it’s PG. They begin discussing some of the biggest 2022 moments, such as the return of Cody Rhodes, the Royal Rumble victory for current SmackDown Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey, WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin returning to the ring, Brock Lesnar’s ring re-arranging at SummerSlam, “Ucey” chants for The Bloodline, Logan Paul’s performance at WWE Crown Jewel, Bad Bunny, Jackass, the Fight Pit, War Dawkins tells Ford to stop naming people because we have three hours to get to it. Ford and Dawkins hype tonight’s show, saying they’re ready for the smoke.
– We’re live from the WWE TV studios in Stamford, CT, on a tape delay, as Jackie Redmond welcomes us to WWE RAW: The Absolute Best of 2022. Corey Graves is with her. They discuss the feud between Brock Lesnar and Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns before taking a look at their SummerSlam Last Man Standing match.
The recap of Lesnar vs. Reigns includes a commercial break and match highlights. We return to Redmond and Graves discussing John Cena and how he celebrated his 20th anniversary on RAW earlier this year. They also mention Cena and Kevin Owens facing off against Reigns and Sami Zayn on Friday’s SmackDown.
– We return from our break with highlights from Kevin Owens’ No Holds Barred match against WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin at WrestleMania 38. WrestleMania highlights include Sami Zayn vs. Johnny Knoxville. In a new pre-recorded segment, Sami is backstage. He questions why the giant mouse trap footage was shown, despite WWE management promising him it would not be shown. That’s fine, according to Sami, because we’re looking at the best of 2022, and you can’t talk about the best of 2022 without mentioning The Bloodline. Sami promises to look into what The Bloodline did in 2022. He describes it as Ucey. Resuming the commercial
– A pre-recorded interview with Cathy Kelley discussing WWE NXT Tag Team Champions The New Day is shown. She congratulates them on their victory over Pretty Deadly in the NXT Deadline title match. They praise Pretty Deadly and say their attention was drawn to them for a while, and that Pretty Deadly is the reason they came to NXT. The titles are extremely prestigious, and The New Day had to have them. They say it feels amazing to win the Triple Crown. They talk about how you accomplish a lot of goals but don’t necessarily set them, and they’re pretty special. They discuss The New Day’s legacy as well as their rivalry with the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions The Usos. The New Day believes the two teams complement each other. Highlights from their November 11 SmackDown match are shown.
– We return from the break with a video package on RAW Women’s Champion Bianca Belair. She discusses her childhood and how she was in a dark place after college due to bulimia. She became disoriented and had to confront her demons, but then WWE came calling. Belair stated that she is now the girl she wished to be as a child but was too shy to be. She can now be herself. Belair claims she was destined to be here and hopes that young girls can see themselves in her. She then joins Graves and Redmond on the big screen. She makes light of how she and her husband, Montez Ford, spend the holidays. Belair also discusses winning the RAW Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 38, as well as her year-long feud with Becky Lynch. Belair claims she enjoys being productive. Highlights from the Belair vs. Lynch match at WrestleMania 38 are shown. On next week’s RAW, Redmond and Graves hype Belair’s title defense against Alexa Bliss.
– A video package on Logan Paul signing with WWE is shown. We’ll look at his Crown Jewel performance later.
– We return from a short break to discuss Sheamus vs. WWE Intercontinental Champion GUNTHER from WWE Clash at The Castle. The Celtic Warrior has now joined Graves and Redmond on the big screen. He mentions celebrating the holidays and shows us his own mini-bar at home. He discusses what makes The Brawling Brutes such a formidable team, such as their lack of egos and desire to fight. Redmond brings up the WWE Extreme Rules Good Old Fashioned Donnybrook Match, in which The Brutes defeated Imperium. Sheamus said that the match should have been called Shillelagh Shenanigans. They discuss the match some more, and we get some highlights of it.
– Another locker room segment features Sami Zayn, who is currently reading the first edition of The Bloodline Dictionary. He claims that this year was the most remarkable of his life and of WWE history because of The Bloodline, the single most dominant faction of all time. He claims that the group dominated in ways that WWE has never seen before, and you can’t talk about dominance without mentioning our Tribal Chief. Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns is featured in 2022 highlights. If you haven’t already, Sami says it’s time to acknowledge Reigns. Sami mentions Solo Sikoa’s incredible debut, and we see Sikoa highlights from the year. He brags about Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions The Usos’ dominance and record-breaking title reign. Sami displays a framed group photo from War Games, claiming that the moment he and The Bloodline fully embraced each other was the absolute highlight of his 2022. If this wasn’t one of the best nights of your life, nothing else will be, he claims. Sami claims that 2022 was just a taste of what’s to come, and there’s no doubt that in 2023, everyone else will be the 2s and The Bloodline will be the 1s. Sami wishes everyone a Merry Christmas. Graves promotes Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens and John Cena for SmackDown.
– Drew McIntyre returns to the UK for Clash at The Castle after a short break. McIntyre appears alongside Redmond and Graves on the big screen. He says he’s currently dealing with a minor issue but will be back soon, and he won’t miss WrestleMania Season because he’s way ahead of schedule. Drew discusses what Clash at The Castle meant to him; it was something he had hoped for for many years. He had hoped for a stadium show in the UK for a long time, and it was fantastic to be in the main event, a moment he will never forget. Drew believes that a major UK show should be held every year. Drew says he’ll be looking for WWE Intercontinental Champion GUNTHER in 2023. He enjoyed the Sheamus vs. GUNTHER matches and says GUNTHER reminds him of his own former Intercontinental Champion status. Highlights from McIntyre and Karrion Kross’s interactions are shown.
– After a break, we see a number of wrestlers are returning in 2022, including current WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Dakota Kai and IYO SKY, Bayley, The Good Brothers, Emma, Valhalla, Hit Row, Legado del Fantasma, Candice LeRae, Johnny Gargano, Mia Yim, Dexter Lumis, and Bray Wyatt. Redmond mentions Cody Rhodes’ return, and Rhodes appears on the big screen. Rhodes discusses his surprise return at WrestleMania 38 and how the reaction overwhelmed him. He says it will be difficult to top that moment because it meant so much to him and his family. When asked about Seth Rollins, he said they aren’t best friends and don’t exchange Christmas cards, but Rollins is one of the top three wrestlers in the world, and having their three matches together was an honor. In battle, Rhodes claims they have formed a bond. Rollins may want a fourth match, but Rhodes doubts it will happen. Graves questions Rhodes about the injury he suffered after Hell In a Cell. He never considered not wrestling because he was told the injury couldn’t get any worse. He claims it was a special night. When they ask about Rhodes in 2023, he says he wants to pick up where he left off. He returned to WWE for one reason, a reference to the WWE Title. Highlights from Rhodes vs. Rollins at Hell In a Cell are shown.
– After a brief break, we return to see Liv Morgan’s 2022 highlights. On the big screen, she joins Graves and Redmond. She discusses winning Money In The Bank and how it was the best night of her life. Morgan was asked what’s next, and she said she’s never satisfied, so she knows the best is yet to come. Things will improve gradually, and she will come to take everything. They mention how she had some setbacks this year, specifically with SmackDown Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey. Liv says Rousey helped her grow, and she beat Rousey twice when everyone said she couldn’t. She was asked if she planned to become more extreme in 2023. She says that next year will be all about taking it to the next level, that pain is what keeps her going, and that she wants to see how far she can go. Liv claims she’s testing how much she can hurt her opponents. We see highlights of Rousey vs. Morgan from WWE Extreme Rules.
– A video package for The Judgment Day is shown, followed by another commercial break. Next up is a video package for WWE United States Champion Austin Theory. Redmond promotes hypes the upcoming Seth Rollins vs. Theory title match. Graves wants to do a deep dive on Bobby Lashley. Highlights from his 2022 match, the December 12 RAW #1 contender match between Lashley and Rollins, and the altercation between Lashley and Adam Pearce are shown. Graves claims Pearce and Lashley resolved their differences, but it is unclear when Lashley will return to RAW.
– We return from our break with a discussion of Logan Paul. They show highlights from Paul’s match at WWE Crown Jewel against Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns.
Redmond and Graves hype Friday’s SmackDown, next Monday’s RAW, and the WWE Royal Rumble on January 28. That concludes the show.
